Article of jewelry



March 7, 1933. P. B'ENJMN 1,900,425

ARTICLE OF JEWELRY Filed Nov 24, 1930 Y A/ n A' W ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 7, 1933 r orales i PHILIP BENJAMIN. OF NEW' YORK, N. Y.

ARTICLE 0F JEWELRY Application led November 24, 1930. Serial No. 497,726.

ture locket which is located so as to be sulv stantially concealed, without adding materially, if at all, to the dimensions of such articles; and also to create an article of jewelry wherein the use, incidentally to which 1t is adapte-d, is not suspected by the average purchaser owing to the successful concealment of the specially located miniature locket.

These being ain-ong the objects of the pres,- ent invention, the same consists of certain features of construction and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and'then claimed with reference to the accompanying; drawing illustrating a desirable ven'ibodiinent of the invention and wherein Figure 1 is a plan of a clasp to which the Y invention is adapted; 1

Fig. 2 is a reverse plan of such clasp;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3*?) of Fig. 1, both of which figures show the clasp applied to a garment; f Y

Fig. l is a section parallel with the aforesaid section, to disclose more fully the spring retaining means for the clasp, which is shown in open position; y,

Fig. 5 is a sectional plan taken through the hinge connect-ion of .the clasp members and showing the back plate which supports the locket, such locket being shown in closed position;

Fig. 6 is a similar view, except that the cover of the locket is shown as opened; and Fig. 7 is a side elevation of the clasp provided with the miniature loclret, and wherein the clasp is shown as closed in the position which it taires when it is not applied to wearing apparel.

eferring to the drawing, there is shown a'baclr plate or body portion 10 and a frontv plate or body lportion 11, the two plates bey ing connected together by a hinge pintle 12 passing through lugs 13 and 14 projecting toward each other from the respective plates. 55 The rear edge portion of ,the back plate 10 is slit along parallel lines as shown, so as to provide springs 15, the ends of which are formed with flat inclined surfaces 16 to matchv correspondingly inclined surfaces 17 60 at the ends of the lugs 14. The function of these inclines is to cause the plates 10, 11 tov converge in fully closed position, as shown in Fig. 7, when the claspis not attached to apparel, and to retain the front platell in fully opened position, sh-own in Fig. 4.

The plate or body 11, as well as the back y plate 10, is preferably composed of metal and may be of any suitable shape, and the plate or body 11 may be ornamented in any suitable manner well knownto those skilled in the art. As shown, the invention is adapted, for example, to an ornamental clasp and the forward end portions of the twofplates are shown as correspondingly tapered to a point. In Figs. 3, 4l, 5 and 6 a shallow holder or receptacle 18 is solderedor otherwise permanently attached'to-the backplatelO and is provided with a rim 19 which extends towards the front plate 11', so that a miniature' 80 photograph or the like may beheld therein. To complete-the loclret formed by the holder 18 and its rim 19, av cover plate or lid 20 is provided which is connected with the rear edge ofthe l receptacle 18 by a hinge 21.

The described locket is relatively thin as compared with the'thicliness of the article of jewelry and is also. of relatively small over allv dimensions so as to constitute a miniature locket. `As shown, the locket is of a shape corresponding substantially in outline to-the forward edges of the back plate and isset forwardly thereon so as to be offset relatively to the area of the said plate. As theloclret shown is of ltapering form sub-k stantially throughout, the small end of the cover plate 20 is formed into a snapprojec-Vv tion 22 adapted to spring over a beveled portion 23 at the small forward end of the receptacle 18, thereby to enable the cover plate 100 to be held in closed position. The closed position of the locket is shown in full lines in Figs. 8, e and 5 and the open position of the cover plate 20 is shown in Fig. 4 in broken lines, where it is thrown back towards the hinge pintle l2 which connects the two plates l0, ll, the locket being removed a considerable distance away from said pintle which connects corresponding edge portions of the two plates.

lVhen the invention is adapted to a clasp, it is preferred that. the edge of the front plate 1l be provided with an inwardly eX- tending flange 24, and that the back plate or body portion l0 be provided with an edge portion 25 which provides a. projecting border, around the loclet, and directly opposite to which the forward portion of said flange comes when the clasp is entirely closed, as shown in Fig. T. ln this embodiment of the invention it will be seen from Fig. 7 that when the clasp is fully closed, the flange 24 materially surrounds the edges of the locket and substantially conceals the same from ordinary view, as when the article of jewelry is on display for sale and otherwise. ln other words, the convergencel of the two body portions l0, 1l, as illustrated, enables the flange 24 to substantially hide the locket. The plate or body portion l1 carries impaling pins 26 as clearly shown in Fig. l and the points of these pins are adapted to register with the holes 27 in the back plate when the clasp is closed, as in Fig. 7 These pins are located one at each side of the locket and together with the projecting hinge 2l of the locket assist in holding the clasp on the material of a garment, as shown in Fig. 3.

It is obvious that the present invention is susceptible to modification without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.

lVhat I claim as new isfl. An article of jewelry such as a clasp or brooch, including a back plate having a flat inner surface throughout, an ornamental front plate, a hinge connecting the plates at corresponding edges, a relatively small receptacle rigidly mounted on the inner surface of the back plate and adjacent its opposite edge, and considerably removed from the other edge, the receptacle being bordered by and entirely set back from projecting edge portions of the back plate, a cover plate for the receptacle and similarly set back from the projecting edge portions, a hinge connecting the cover plate with the inner end of the receptacle, a snap fastening for securing the cover plate in closed position on the receptacle, and an inner flange on the face plate having such width and length as to oppose said projecting edge vportions and surround the receptacle when the plates are closed, the plates being sufiiciently separated, when closed together, to receive and be engaged over the material on which the clasp is to be worn so as to leave the front plate visible, and

the material, means forsecuring the clasp to such material, and a relatively small receptacle located on the inner surface of the back plate and having a cover plate hinged thereto at a point adjacent aforesaid hinge, the small receptacle and its cover plate being also concealable from view when the clasp is worn on such material.

3. An article of jewelry such as a clasp or brooch, including a bacl; plate, an ornamental front plate, a hinge connecting the two plates at corresponding edges, the two plates being sufiiciently separated when closed together, to engage the material on which the clasp is to be worn so as to leave the ornamental front plate visible and the back plate concealed, spring means tending to close the plates on the material, a relatively small receptacle located on the inner surface of the back plate and having a cover plate hinged thereto at a point adjacent aforesaid hinge, and impaling pins on one of the said plates of the clasp and projecting beyond the cover plate of the receptacle, for penetrating such material, the small receptacle and its cover plate being also concealable from view when the clasp is worn on such material.

PHILIP BENJAMIN. 

